Loyalty
by SquintSquad183
Summary: It's been six years since Scott went missing without a trace. Now he's back, bearing a secret. So changed that his old pack doesn't even recognize him. With his new pack loyally behind him, the youth must face his old pack, answer some questions and face his past in a way that could destroy everything. Friends and enimies will be reunited, and their world will be thrown into chaos.
1. Prologue

**AN: I know.. I know I have other fics that need working on, don't kill me! This has been in my head and it won't leave me alone, so I thought If I got at least my prologue out it would leave me alone so I could work on Brothers and Running Through the Dark as well as my Scrubs fic. Also, if you happen to read my Criminal Minds fics, check out my profile. Some have been placed on hiatus as I've lost the will to continue them. Thanks if you've actually read all this *hands cyber double chocolate chip cookie* **

**Disclaimer:: I own nothing. If I did, believe me, you'd know it. I'm simply getting a fix until the new season. **

**Warnings:: Foul language, violence and gore. [[There will be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters.]]**

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It was a Tuesday. When Scott McCall went missing. Most of his clothes were gone, everything else was left. The police became involved, and the pack soon after. Both searches turned up fruitless. Because it seemed he had left of his own accord, the police gave up the search on his eighteenth birthday. The pack almost gave up their existance, as Scott's loss was excruciating for the pack. Their howls could be heard every night, echoing off trees, and off homes and buildings.

Derek, if possible, became even more distant from his pack at the loss of his beta. Isaac and Stiles were devastated by the disappearance of their friend. Jackson lost almost all of his 'greater than thou' attitude. Allison wasn't seen in public for weeks. Erica and Boyd stayed with the pack, more out of fear than anything.

For months, they howled, begging the return of their beloved. They searched, prayed, and eventually conceded to the fact that he wasn't coming back. They chased down every passing nomad Omega, longing for it to be the one missing from their numbers.

Two months passed, and they eventually stopped howling. They fought more often, and were under less control. And Derek didn't seem to care. Very rarely did he spend any time with his pack, and said pack slipped into chaos. The chaos lasted for a year, until the one year anniversary of his disappearance.

That night, they howled again. The pack united under their grief. There was an unspoken pact that reunited the pack, if fragily. And it was in that fragility that the pack began to regrow. Bonds were reformed, friendships tightened, family reunited, but there were subtle differences.

Stiles no longer hung out near the pack. Instead he delved into a new group of friends at school after awhile. Isaac didn't joke as much, he kept to himself and didn't speak often. Jackson spent more time by himself or just with Lydia. He distanced himself from the pack, and became more of an Omega than anything. Derek slowly started to return to his pack, interacting and speaking more, but he wasn't as close. He didn't bond himself to any of them.

The months and years passed, but every single year on the anniversary of his disappearance, all of the pack that had been around when Scott vanished gathered. And together they howled, mourning and praying for their old friend. Allison usually came, but more often than not she would slip up to the place she and Scott used to meet in secret and sit there all night.

Time passed, and they went about their lives.

Two years. Erica and Boyd announced their engagement. Later that year they married.

Three years after he left, Lydia and Jackson got engaged. Erica and Boyd left Beacon Hills. They bought a house in Arizona. They still visited the pack whenever they had the chance. Allison began dating the son of her father's friend, a proud young hunter. She distanced herself considerably from the pack.

Four years. Erica and Boyd stopped visiting after their first child, a daughter, was born. Lydia and Jackson were finally married. They bought a house in Beacon Hills and Jackson got a job as the new lacrosse coach as Beacon Hills High. Stiles got enrolled in a community college a few miles outside of town. Allison began working at the sports center in town, giving archery lessons.

The years went by, but every single year on the anniversary of Scott's disappearance, they would gather. They would howl, reminisce, and think back to when the wolf with the puppy dog eyes was among their midst. Then the sixth year approached.

That's when all hell broke loose.

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**Yeah, it was bad, I know. I really struggled through this part. It gets better after this, I promise. Reviews? I update faster when I have more reveiws. :D Thanks for reading. **


	2. The Diner

**AN:: Hey guys! I couldn't help but to finish my first actual chapter. I've become surprisingly invested in this story, although I don't know why, and a lot of my writers block was thankfully cleared as I wrote this. **

**Disclaimer :: Back off lawyers! I don't own this and I'm not making any profit off of it. Believe me, if I could make profit off of fanfiction I would be very happy.**

**Warnings:: For now everything's pretty PG, but in the future there will be: Foul language, violence and gore. There might also be be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters.**

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A man walked down a dark street, his dark shoe soles creating noise the echoed through the empty road. The trench coat that was wrapped loosely around his body seemed to be enough to shield from the cold that caused warm vapor to appear in front of his face every time he took a breath. He seemed utterly unconcerned with the fact that he was meandering down an empty road at almost midnight. He turned up the collar of the coat before eyeing a twenty-hour cafe down the stretch of road. After taking what appeared to be a moment of deliberation, he renewed his pace toward the cafe.

Walking into the cafe, the man did not bother to shed his jacket, which was covered in droplets from the light drizzle that had begun outside, nor did he shake the water out of his midnight black, short cut hair. He didn't even seem to acknowledge the path of water a few drops were carving down his face. As he walked across the cafe to seat himself at a worn booth in the back, there was a pronounced limp in his left leg. In fact, if you were to raise the trench coat above his shin, you would see most of his pant leg was saturated in crimson.

His injury aside, the moment he sat on the nylon upholstery, he leaned his head back and let out a low sigh that exuded relief. He showed no impatience as he waited for the waitress to come to his table, in fact he appeared to almost dread the young woman, who was not a day over nineteen, coming to his table. However when she reached him, all hint of doubt left his face. He flashed her a smile that made her cheeks turn pink with blush.

"H-hi. What c-can I get for you?" she stammered, obviously flustered. She had taken in every feature of the mans face and would later freely say that he was incredibly handsome. Her eyes scanned over his dark eyebrows, almond shaped brown eyes, his short cut facial hair that resembled a five o'clock shadow yet still looked, in her opinion, incredibly sexy, and his even, full lips. Just the sight of him made her heart pound. The man obviously knew he had this effect, so he tossed in a lopsided smile for good measure just before he spoke for the first time.

"Well, I'm not sure. What all is good here?" His voice was steady and even, it displayed an easygoing confidence that his body language supported. He turned to sit diagonally in the seat to better face the young woman.

"W-well.. uhm.. The tomato soup is pretty good.. Even better on a stormy night l-like tonight." She offered, stammering and stuttering all the way through it as the man had just given another smile that made her ears ring.

"That sounds perfect. I'll have some black coffee and a bowl of tomato soup." he chuckled as she hurriedly scrawled down the order like she was busy, when in fact he was the only patron in the street side diner. As she left the table he leaned backwards before carefully prodding his injured leg. His face contorted into a grimace and he quickly pulled his hand away, wiping the transferred blood onto the knee of his jean pants before returning them to the tabletop. Out of what appeared to simply be boredom, he drummed his fingers lightly on the pale wood of the table, his eyes moved to stare out the window and watch the rain fall, while his mind apparently was occupied elsewhere.

It wasn't long before he had dropped so deep into thought the sound of the waitress approaching almost made him jump in surprise. He tilted his eyes up at her as she placed the bowl of the red soup before him along with a plain white mug which contained steaming coffee. He dipped his head.

"Thank you very much." His words seemed to be genuine as he took a sip of the coffee. Despite the steam that could be seen above the coffee indicating it's temperature, he didn't seem to notice or care as he swallowed a large gulp. As the waitress walked away he set to eating the soup. It was good and reminded him of the soup he would usually fix when he was at home. It felt nice as it warmed him from the inside out.

It wasn't even another fifteen minutes before both the soup and coffee were gone. He stood and looked to the waitress who was taking the order of a man who was obviously homeless and had just walked in.

"Can I get my check?" he asked in a calm, polite voice.

"Sure thing. Just gimme a sec." She replied, turning her attention back to the customer she was talking to. She ripped the order sheet out of her book and walked to pin it on the strip of rope on the kitchen window. She then dug into the pocket of her apron and pulled out the receipt for the tomato soup and coffee. She walked back to her first customer. "Uhm... For the soup and the coffee.. It'll be four dollars and thirty-nine cents." She handed him the receipt.

Digging into his pocket, the young man pulled out the metal clip he held his cash in, and pulled out six dollars and handed it to her.

"There you go." He turned on his heel, striding toward the door with confident, sure steps. The rain had picked up slightly, but he didn't mind much as he reached toward the door handle.

"Thank you. Come again soon." The waitress called out. He didn't answer as he pulled the door open and felt the cold wind rush against his face along with a few raindrops as he left. He had no intention of ever being back at this diner. He stepped out onto the street, feeling the rain slide down his jacket over his back, shoulders, and chest and the icy water against his scalp as it soaked through his hair and ran down his neck. To be honest, he liked the feeling. The diner was warm and stuffy, so the cold was a natural relief.

Rather than looking for a ride or pulling out a phone and calling a friend, he simply set off walking down the road. He walked and walked. He seemed to never tire. His pace never slackened or slowed, and his gaze never left directly ahead of him, even as he left the little town and walked along a road that winded through the forest. His body language betrayed no fear as he walked until his clothes soaked underneath his coat.

He eventually became so wet the blood was rinsing out of his jeans, creating a crimson trail in his wake that was quickly washed away by the still pouring rain. As the wind picked up, he did cover his face slightly in the collar of the trench coat, shielding it from the icy wind.

The steam from his breath shrouded his face as he eventually came to what he was looking for, a wooden sign that read 'Welcome to Beacon Hills'. As he stood at the peak of a hill looking over the sleeping town, his upper lip curled, exposing canines too large to belong to any human as a guttural and animalistic snarl rumbled out of his chest.

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**Like? Review pwease? Any guesses as to who our handsome stranger is? Thank you for reading! See you next chapter!**


	3. The Hale Pack

**Here's the next chapter. I really hope you guys enjoy it. **

**Disclaimer :: Look.. if you haven't pieced together the fact that I don't own any of this, then you need to go get your head checked. **

**Warnings:: For now everything's pretty PG, maybe the occasional curse, but in the future there will be: Foul language, violence and gore. There might also be be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters. I might throw in a few mentions of Scisaac, but it won't be anything major. **

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Issac Lahey was loping through the forest. He chose to lope simply because it allowed him to travel long distances without tiring. His sapphire blue eyes scanning the forest around him, absorbing information about terrain he knew basically from memory. He would also be surveying by hearing as well, if it weren't for his companion. The younger male was trying, he really was trying to keep quiet, but being the clumsiest werewolf Isaac had ever seen, well any _human _could hear him for miles.

Joshua Martin was eighteen years old and the only member of the lacrosse team to cause more injuries than receive, to the point where Coach Jackson had threatened to kick him off the team. He had joined the pack a year ago on his seventeenth birthday when he practically begged Derek to give him the bite. That being said, if he had to choose the member of the pack he could tolerate the most, the prize would definitely go to Isaac. Ever since he had moved into the newly renovated Hale house the pair had been practically inseparable.

"Wait!" Isaac paused his easy going pace, turning and walking a few feet back and inhaling deeply through his nose. "Do you smell that?" he asked, turning to Josh. Of course he knew exactly what it was, but the younger wolf hadn't gotten any experience with Omega's yet, with the exception of Jackson. "Can you tell me what that is?"

"Okay, I'm not four Isaac. I know that that's an Omega. Probably just another nomad like last time." Josh sounded slightly interested, but not really. His green eyes gave away his disinterest, and Isaac knew it.

"Whatever. Go finish the run. I'll go tell Derek." His voice was taut, stressed, and worried, for a single reason. He felt like he knew the scent of this nomad. It was almost entirely alien to him, but if he really, _really _smelled it, it struck a chord deep in his chest, like he was wrong to not remember to whom the scent belonged. He turned and set off for the Hale house, where he knew Derek was probably pacing or working out.

To his utter shock, the closer he got to the house, the stronger and more recently the scent seemed to become, but he still couldn't tell whom it belonged to. Suddenly the scent just stopped. Observing that he was a mere forty yards from the pack residence, Isaac doubled back a few times, if merely to ascertain his suspicions. Whomever this Omega was, they obviously knew better than to venture too close to the house. Eventually deciding there was little to no more information to be gathered by the traces of the Omega, he closed the distance between himself and the house.

"Derek?" He knew he didn't have to call loud. Derek's car was still out front and he could hear almost the entire property if he was to simply use a normal speaking voice. And sure enough, he heard a grunt and a muffled response.

"Coming.." He heard the squeak of feet on wood from two individuals, and seconds later both Derek and Peter appeared in the door frame and joined Isaac on the pine needle covered yard. "What is it?" Derek's voice was agitated, and Isaac knew why, it was nearing the time that the Hale fire had occurred. About that time every year Derek would get always got all stressed and dominant.

"We have an Omega.. and it's coming close. It's literally circled the house less than a mile. Here's the weird thing though.. This probably sounds crazy but.. I think I know the scent." Isaac started to pace slightly as he ran through all the scents he could remember in his head, ranging from his drunken father to former Coach Finstock's sweaty. Nothing matched.

"Alright.. we'll go check it out..." Derek said with a slight nod of his head. He made his way through the undergrowth, smelling the air as he went. When he had ranged about thirty-odd yards from his old family home, he breathed in the odor of the Omega. Suddenly he understood why Isaac had appeared to be distressed by the scent. It was painstakingly familiar, but he just couldn't place it. He knew that scents could change over time, depending on pack, health, rank, and so on and so forth, so he compared it to all the scents he could remember, but nothing even came close to matching. It was then he noticed Peter.

His uncle was standing unnaturally still near where the scent started, his blue eyes were wide and alarmed, and Derek could hear the rate of his heartbeat starting to pick up. He walked closer to his last remaining relative, before questioning.

"Peter? Do you recognize it?"

"Uhm... Kinda?" Derek rolled his eyes. Peter could be _such _a pain in the ass sometimes. Seriously.. I mean wasn't he supposed to be older, therefore the more mature one?

"Elaborate on 'kinda', would ya?"

"I know that I'm the one that bit him. Back when I was the alpha.."

"You _what? _Well.. do you remember a name? And appearance? Anything?"

"No.. It's different... The scent is different than I remember... and if _you _don't remember, I died.. my memories are a bit foggy as it is.. but I can tell you something.." Peter's eyes focused on something in the distance.

"Yes?"

"He's right there." Derek's head snapped to look where Peter was looking, and sure enough, so far away he was almost out of sight, was the silhouette of a man. Without a second of thought they both started running towards him. The man seemed genuinely unconcerned as he turned and simply began to walk it still seemed that no matter how fast Derek ran, he wasn't gaining any ground on this Omega, and within about twenty seconds, he was left standing there, eyes glowing red, and absolutely no idea where to go. Somehow, the Omega's scent had just stopped. He paced backwards to see if he had just missed it, but to no avail. It was just gone. He turned to look at his uncle, confusion growing over his features.

"What the hell is going on here?"

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**Side note :: When I mentioned Peter having bitten someone, in my mind I always picture Peter being older than his brother (Derek's father). So I've always pictured him as the alpha until the fire, and when he was in a coma and was practically dead it went to Laura.. so it could be anyone. **

**Welp.. there it is. As always, reviews are much appreciated. **


	4. Midnight Run

**AN:: So.. here it is. BTW, it's my birthday. *sings* Happy birthday to me! I hope this wasn't too bad, but I've been making an effort to write more and with better vocab and grammar. By the way, I may be changing my username shortly, but it's still good ol' me. **

**Disclaimer:: Alas, I am nothing but a poor Floridian. I don't own any of this. **

**Warnings:: For now everything's pretty PG, but in the future there will be: Foul language, violence and gore. There might also be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters.**

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The lightning streaked through the sky with blinding brilliance, and the thunder than followed shook the Earth while the rain fell from the sky in an unrelenting torrent. Grass and all small shrubbery bowed in the wake of the wind that tore through the forest like claws. The wind, however, was not the only thing ripping through the mass of pines.

There were four. They ran on their hands and feet like animals, yet with a speed that would surpass nearly any land mammal. Each one of their long, bounding strides took them several feet ahead, and though their legs were longer than their arms which resulted in an uneven gait, they were undeniably graceful and coördinated. They could almost seem to be human, were it not for the elongated canines and claws or the glowing eyes and pointed ears.

Despite their animalistic features, this pack was obviously extremely intelligent, as evidenced by their pattern and formation in a run. The dark man was in the lead, flanked closely on his right side by another male with light brown hair. His shoulders were broad and his body was overall muscular, which was a good thing as he wasn't as fast as the others, his longer leaps compensated for his lack of speed. On his left side was a female, a savage beauty to her features was plain to see as short cut, dark auburn hair was swept backwards by the wind. She was slighter and smaller than the others, but her quick strides made keeping up with the males look effortless. Directly behind the dark-haired male was another male, his blonde hair also cut short, as seemed to be the theme of what appeared to be a group of Omegas.

Despite the appearance of Omegas, there was a distinction in the way that they ran that would catch a pack wolf's eye. There was a pronounced affinity between the group, similar to that of a family unit. This was clearly a group that was accustomed to each other. The slightest motion from any of them seemed to communicate more than words could based on the reactions by the rest. The tilt of a head could signify a change in direction, the slightest pause in a stride could request a change of pace. Which was exactly what happened.

The sound of an ATV's engine roared above that of the pouring rain. The wolf to the farthest right gave a low whining sound, and the dark-haired gave a reply growl. Just like that, the group split into two. The dark-haired male and the she-wolf veered off to the left, while the two remaining males swerved sharply to the right. Their pace, if possible, increased, as they turned and actually ran _toward _the sound of the ATVs. There were three of them, one held one man, the other held both a young man and a young woman. The dark-haired male and the female ran alongside the ATV with only one, about ten feet away an into the brush, keeping watch on the motorized vehicle.

The other two males kept watch on the other ATV. Eventually the smaller groups split apart, creating a loose circle around the four wheelers. The dark-haired male gave a loud howl, his voice rising in timbre and falling quickly before shooting back up again. The others joined in as the hunters brought the four wheelers to a complete stop. Bows and guns were raised as the wolves slowly fell back. They began circling, lips curling and growled resonating out of each wolf in turn. The young female hunter shot an arrow into the bushes, and she wasn't disappointed, the brunette male gave a pained whine and fell back. The voice of Christopher Argent rang above the pained cry.

"Allison. I said no shots until they actually present a threat."

"If they didn't pose a threat, why wouldn't they have shown themselves yet?" the younger man snapped back irritably.

"Not now Andrew.." Allison Argent's voice calmed the young man.

"Probably because you're shooting arrows at them!"

The dark haired wolf gave a short, wavering howl and took off running, plunging deeper into the greenery. He ignored trails, feeling the plants and branches tear at his tee shirt, his trench coat was nowhere to be seen. His erratic heart rate calmed immensely as he felt the familiar thrum of footsteps behind him and could hear the panting of the rest of his group. He pressed himself faster, pushing his body closer and closer to its limit. He tossed his head to the side, and accordingly the other three veered off in the direction he had pointed whilst he himself kept straight.

His blood pounded in his ears as he heard the ATV gaining on him. He turned to the right, heading toward a specific place in the forest. He heard the voices from the ATV behind him, and felt a rush of satisfaction as he heard the words indicating his deception had worked.

"He's heading toward the Hale house. Probably part of Derek's pack." the eldest Argent called out.

"Where'd the others go? I don't see the other three." This time it was the younger man.

"I don't know, but keep on his trail."

A smile playing on his lips, he stopped cold in his tracks, turning to face the ATV's, his mouth opening to expose the full expanse of his canines, bracing his shoulders. He stared into the lights as the ATVs moved closer and closer. He could actually feel the heat from the engine before he shot off to the left. He ran for about two hundred yards before cutting hard left. He joined up with the rest of his group after about another mile. Returning into formation, they headed back into the depths of the forest. They kept running, before arriving at a cottage-like shelter covered in ivy.

"Wait.." he ordered as they all skidded to a firm stop. He pulled a bag out of his pocket, which was filled with pale pink flowers. "Bury this around the shelter. Keep it away from your face. It will mess up your sense of smell for a while if you do. And keep it away from your mouth. It's my own wolfsbane mutation. It'll keep the Hale pack away." The others did as he instructed, and as they did so, they all began to relax.

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Derek, Peter, Isaac, and Jackson all met in front of the house, everything bathed in silver light from the moon. It was Derek who spoke first.

"I can't believe it's been six years he's been gone.." They'd always referred to Scott's absence as 'gone'. They'd never spoken aloud the generally accepted fact that Scott had probably been killed by another pack. They had found other wolf scent near his house. It made sense. But they would only ever refer to him as 'gone.' As with speaking, it was also Derek who raised his head toward the sky and howled first, his voice rising as his lament echoed through the forest. Peter's voice was second to rise, followed by Isaac and lastly Jackson.

Suddenly and without warning, four more voices joined in. Distant and unclear, their howls of relief layer with a slight taunt lingered into the melancholy cries of the Hale pack, creating an eerie melody that shook the forest. Derek paused, mid-howl. But this time, Peter took the words out of his mouth.

"What. The. Hell?"

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**So, hope you enjoyed. As always, being the review whore that I am, reviews are greatly appreciated. See you next chapter!**


	5. Revelation

**AN:: So.. I know this one is longer than usual.. I just got SOO caught up and I couldn't decide where I wanted to leave the cliffhanger.. So I ended up running long. I hope you don't mind. Got some drama.. We find out the name of our mysterious stranger.. Kinda. Hope you enjoy. **

**Disclaimer:: Poor Floridian here.. I don't own anything.. Swear. **

**Warnings:: For now everything's pretty PG, but in the future there will be: Foul language, violence and gore. There might also be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters.**

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The brunette male and the she-wolf were edging through the forest, each hyperaware of every step they were taking and the effect it would have on the area. They had laced their shoes with the mutated wolfsbane which would keep another wolf from tracking their scent, although it did itch occasionally. The female navigated through the seemingly endless sea of pine needles, bushes, moss, and trees, while the male threw his senses out in every direction, his every nerve aware and alert for danger.

They were making their way over a bluff, when the she-wolf asked him a question.

"How's your shoulder?" She had seen him pull the arrowhead out and dress it, but she knew it wouldn't be all the way healed. They were all hungry and weak, their healing process had long been drastically reduced to about half of that of a wolf in good health.

"It's fine. Almost gone." She rolled her eyes at her older brother. "Would it kill you to speak in complete sentences?"

"It very well could if I'm trying to listen for- Wait.." He stiffened.

"Okay, Felix that's the fourth time in five minutes, if this is another squirrel, so help me god-" Irritation was evident in the young woman's tone, as well as impatience and sarcasm.

"No.. I'm serious.. I heard voices... Listen." Sure enough, in the distance if one was listening enough the sound of two guys talking could be heard.

"Is there any chance its Aaron and Sam?" Her voice dropped to a whisper so low it could barely be heard, even with advanced hearing.

"No.." His eyes flashed golden for a moment. "Riley.. Run.." he growled, slowly shifting wolf. "Now!" Obediently, the she-wolf took off running toward the town of Beacon Hills. It was still several miles, but it was worth taking the chance. She ran, her heart pounding as she went. The second she split from her elder brother, an overwhelming sense of loneliness overcame her. She felt entirely vulnerable without a Felix or Sam beside her, not that she would ever actually admit it. She heard a splitting howl coming from her brother, alerting the others, Sam and Aaron that is, that he needed help. She could hear the snarls of two wolves from the Hale pack. She stopped, and whirled around.

"Felix?" her voice was cautious, yet she was clearly concerned for her brother's welfare. She listened as hard as she could, and was relieved slightly when she heard Aaron join her brother. She could picture his lip curling above his canines to taunt the bigger of the two enemies. It almost made her smile. Then a realization occurred to her. Sam would _never _leave members of their group alone against enemy forces. Was he okay? Concern for the male who was almost her mate took precedent over her as she heard the battle between her brother and Aaron against the Hale wolves begin to subside.

"Sam? SAM!? Samuel!?" She was torn between going toward the town or rushing to the shelter to search for Sam. She felt like she was being ripped in two, to the point where a physical pain flared up in her chest. She heard a howl of triumph from her brother, before turning to look. Standing with his back to her, was a man with midnight black hair, broad shoulders, and a black, leather jacket. She smiled and trotted closer. "Sam.. how dare you! You scared the living shit out of-" The man turned. It wasn't Sam. Although she couldn't help but be surprised by the resemblance. She staggered backwards, staring as the man's eyes flashed red. This was the Hale alpha.

She turned and ran, not caring which direction she was running. She had to get away from the alpha. Sam had warned her that Hale pack could be ruthless if they so wanted to be, and she wasn't about to bet her life on the chance that they might be in a good mood. She turned and started running for Beacon as she was picking up speed, however, she felt a strong hand close tightly around her wrist and was whirled around to face a man. She at first thought that it was the alpha, but quickly she noticed the subtle differences.

For one, she was staring into probably the prettiest blue eyes she had ever seen, and his hair and body type was slightly different. She could however, make the assumption that this male was related in some way to the alpha. She tried to pull away, but the man's grip was like iron, holding her in a vise like grip. He rolled his eyes, before speaking for the first time in her presence.

"You do know that I'm not going to hurt you right? If I wanted to, I would have already. So just _chill out _would you?" She was so taken back by the words she stopped pulling. The male gave a smile. "Much better." She listened to her own heartbeat start to slow as she calmed down and began to think rationally, trying to think of ways she could get away. Her heart was almost back to normal when she heard another voice.

"You got her Peter?" She whirled her head to the see the Alpha about ten feet away. At that her heart rate skyrocketed again and she started fighting to get loose. She had a feeling from the blue-eyed wolf that he was being honest that _he _wouldn't hurt her. She had no such assurances from the alpha. As she stared at him, her wide, grey eyes looking him over, she was surprised to find even more resemblance to Sam. They seemed to carry themselves in an identical way, pride and confidence. She still didn't want him anywhere near her, so she fought, pulling hard enough for the wolf holding her, she now knew him as Peter, to stumble and almost let go.

"Well.. I did.." He replied sarcastically. She felt a hand rise and rest on the back of her neck. She felt claws extend outwards to scratch the skin enough to cause discomfort. She knew that he could dig the claws in and create unfathomable pain. She knew the only way to avoid it was to do what he wanted. She stopped pulling, forced her eyes down, and let her shoulders slump inwards, submitting. "Much better." he approved.

She was quiet as she was led through winding paths in the forest and to a large house. Sam had brought them here, teaching them where they could go without being detected. Teaching them how to dare closer and not get caught. She knew she could use her knowledge of the area around the house to her advantage when she figured out how to escape. As Peter led her closer to the house, the scent of the rest of the pack got stronger, reinforcing the knowledge she already had about them. She was led up onto a porch where they stopped.

"Sit down." Peter instructed, and reluctantly she obeyed, and she felt some discomfort as he attached her wrists to the arms of the chair with zip ties. She tested the chair, only to find it bolted down. _Dammit.. _Seconds later, her brother was seated in the chair next to her and strapped down. He thrashed until his wrists bled, but he wasn't going to be getting out anytime soon.

"Stop.. you're only going to hurt yourself.." Finally her brother seemed to calm down some. She stared as the Hale pack gathered. There were five, finally joined by a sixth that smelled slightly of an Omega. They talked rapidly in tones too quiet to hear from where they were. She looked at her brother, her eyes wide in fear.

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Derek turned to look at the two Omega's that were held stationary on the porch, then towards the forest. The sound of a heart beating faintly in the distance roused his attention. It was moving closer. The heartbeat betrayed no fear as it moved slowly closer. He could smell his scent now, thanks to the aid of the wind, the one that had been around the house and all through the territory. He growled, his eyes melting to scarlet and his claws extending. He looked to the others.

"He's coming." And sure enough, soon the figure could be seen standing about five feet into the forest, staring at the wolves on the porch. He then turned to look at the pack, and a growl was heard. As he got closer to the edge of the clearing, Derek could understand how the she-wolf could confuse him for this male. The long black trench coat reminded him of when Peter was the alpha, but otherwise.. The black, short cut hair, stiff body, confident, proud.. in many ways it was like looking at himself.

"We don't know who you are. We haven't harmed these two. We just want to know who you are and what you're doing here on our territory." He heard the laugh of the man in the shadows.

"Who am I?" He stepped into the light, a wry smile etching across his face. "I'm hurt. We're supposed to be brothers, remember?"

A night from long ago echoed in the alpha's mind. _'You and me Scott, we're brothers.' _His eyes widened in shock, his eyes falling back to hazel as he stared.

"Scott?" As the name left his mouth, his voice sounded weak and terrified. His body stiffened in shock.

His shock escalated as he saw the once warm brown eyes flash rubyred.

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**Dun. Dun. DUUUUN! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next chapter! As always, reviews are much appreciated. **


	6. Confrontation

**A/N:: Okay.. so more secrets are revealed! Mwa ha ha! From this point forward, Scott will mainly be referred to as Sam because that's what he goes by now. :D Hope it's not too confusing. Anyway, now that I'm back at school and whatnot, chapters will be a bit slower, sorry.. I don't like it either. **

**Disclaimer:: I don't know who you think you're kidding if you think I own any rights to Teen Wolf or it's characters. **

**Warnings:: For now everything's pretty PG, but in the future there will be: Foul language, violence and gore. There might also be dark themes suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters.**

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"Let them go." The words were snarled with a venomous edge as the man known both as Scott and Sam glared at Derek, whom had yet to move since the change of eye color of his former friend. In fact, every eye in the clearing was on the younger wolf who just revealed himself to be an alpha. Isaac's eyes looked shocked and betrayed. Jackson looked mildly surprised but indifferent nonetheless, or at least that's the face he was putting up. Peter didn't look a bit surprised while Derek looked like he might need a slap to get him back into his own head. Young Joshua and another female from the Hale pack looked outright confused, their faces plain in their perplexion.

The brother and sister, still tied down to chairs on the porch, obviously had no clue what was going on. The only emotion that was clearly discernible on their features was concern for their alpha, their own fear completely obliterated. This was noted by nearly all the Hale pack. The simple appearance of their alpha was enough to make these wolves feel safe and confident. They had calmed slightly when Sam looked at them, his eyes, despite being scarlet, were calm, as was his heartbeat.

"Let them go." he repeated, his voice, if possible, more poisonous than before, a hard edge to them. Tearing his eyes from his own pack, they flicked to Derek, then Peter, followed by Jackson and Isaac. He then turned to give a hard look to the two youngest, who fought the urge to quail under the blistering gaze. "Now."

"Cut them loose Peter." Surprisingly, it wasn't Derek who delivered these words, it was Isaac. Derek, of course, whirled to look at Isaac, growling lowly. Isaac didn't even flinch. "What? We took them so we could lure in their leader. We did, we found out who it was. They haven't caused any trouble with the townspeople and they haven't attacked us or even the hunters. We don't attack if they don't cause trouble, even if the situation is.. complicated."

Derek knew he couldn't argue the point, so he just nodded as Peter cut the zip ties. The formerly strapped down individuals were off the porch in the heartbeat. The male, Felix, made it to his alpha first, his eyes holding a question as he approached. Sam gave a small smile and a nod, and in response, Felix darted off into the forest, leaving only Sam and the female.

"Where's he going?" It was Derek's voice this time, the first time he had spoken since the revelation of the nomad pack leader. His voice was wary, his eyes flicking around the forest, as if expecting the male to come leaping out, launching an attack. Scott/Sam obviously had caught on, and a dark, cold laugh escaped him, so different from anything the Hale pack was used to.

"If we were going to attack you, you'd know it. He's going to attend to pack matters. That's all _you _and _your _pack need to know."

"It was once your pack too, if you don't remember." To everyone's shock, this time the statement came from none other than Peter, who's voice was traced with the feeling of betrayal. Adding to the surprise that lit the still air like electricity, his comment was met by a furious snarl by Sam, filled with so much rage every wolf in the clearing, with the exception of Riley, the female, took a step back.

"Yeah, I was once your pack, whenever you needed me! You _never _wanted me around unless you needed to be stronger. Or if you wanted my advice. Unless you needed me, I didn't even _exist!_ You probably didn't even realize I was gone until you needed me around again."

"That's not true.." Derek's voice was quiet, almost weak. He almost looked to be in physical pain as he stared at the former packmate he had believed to be dead for six years.

"Oh, it's not true? It's _not true?!_" He had taken several steps closer to the Hale pack alpha, his eyes practically glowing red due to his fury, his pulse racing as his vision tinged with red. "It's 'not true' _Derek?_ Name one time. _One time _when you wanted me around when it didn't benefit _you _and it didn't come back to bite _me _in the ass!First, it was the Alpha. I didn't understand, I was scared, and you knew I would give anything in this world to be normal again. So what did you do? You preyed on that. You took advantage. You promised me you'd help me kill the alpha, you promised you'd help me become normal again. And what did you do? You killed him yourself so _you _could be an alpha, even though I did almost _everything _you asked of me." Derek said nothing, while Peter shifted awkwardly as the discussion reached the topic of his death.

By this time, an eerie silence had cloaked the clearing. Not a single soul moved, Derek hadn't moved, although the distance between himself and Scott had closed to within a foot. They were all shocked and astounded at what the younger alpha had just said, but he wasn't done there.

"Then it was Gerard. You kept telling me that I wouldn't survive alone, away from a pack. Then you went and bit Isaac, who was innocent and scared and had no _idea _the real dangers that come with this world. You _knew _I would feel responsible for his wellbeing,so what did I do? Yet again, I caved. I told myself that now that you were an alpha you'd be more responsible, more devoted to your pack. Then it was Erica, and then Boyd. Yet it still never fails to surprise me that it was still _me _who finally brought Gerard down. And all you could do was lay on the ground and stare at me like _I _had betrayed you. Even after the Kanima, I never got a 'Thank you' for saving your ass. You lied to me _repeatedly _and still expected me to trust you!" At the word Kanima, Jackson visibly flinched, and at the mention of Isaac's background he looked taken aback, yet still, not a single soul said a word.

"Next came the Alpha Pack. I swore up and down I wasn't going to rejoin your pack, I wasn't going to put myself into the position to be taken advantage of _again. _But what happened? You came to me, practically begging for help. You told me how many innocent people would be killed if they weren't taken care of quickly. You told me how they would kill Isaac, and Erica, and Boyd, and even Peter. So me, being the extreme idiot that I am, came back and helped. I almost _died _for _you!_" And then what happened? The second the Alpha pack left, you decided I wasn't worth having around and I didn't exist anymore. I was just the pest to keep around for the sake of 'just in case'. So I'm fucking _sorry _for not being good enough to be apart of the pack for more than five god damn minutes, but you were _never _my family."

Nobody moved. Eyes were wide, and Scott's breath had changed to a pant, as his voice had risen to a yell in the past five minutes.

"Sam.." it was Riley, who had stepped forward and laid her hand gently between his shoulder blades. Her voice was gentle as she leaned forward to speak quietly into his ear, although naturally every being in the clearing could hear it. "You were right.. we shouldn't have come here.. let's leave.. Kristin and John won't be able to keep the pups safe for long.. and you really look like you need to see your son." If possible, eyes widened even further around the front of the house.

Suddenly and without any warning whatsoever, Felix came crashing back into the clearing, he had made so much noise, it took them a minute to notice it, and once they did, jaws fell open in shock at how the male had even managed to get back to the clearing. An arrow protruded out of his chest and blood trickled out of the corners of his mouth as he hit the ground, gasping for air, trying to force lungs that were obviously punctured to fill with oxygen.

"No.." the words were simultaneous from both Sam and Riley, who were instantly at Felix's side, trying to staunch the bleeding without tearing out the arrow and possibly do more damage. "Sam.. Sam he's not healing.."

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**Is that the real reason Sam/Scott left? Why do the pups need to be kept safe? Why is Sam's pack having to find a new home? Sam has a son? Who shot Felix? SO MANY QUESTIONS! **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and Reviews are always appreciated. See you next chapter and thanks for reading!**


	7. Sacrifice

**A/N:: Hey guys, so I stayed up kinda late last night trying to finish it and proofed it this morning. I hope it's not too bad, but I needed to come up with a way for Derek and his pack to see the truth of how their old friend was really doing. Also, I tried taking Peter in an odd direction this time. Whenever I've ever read anything about him, he is always either the bad guy or an outcast. Well.. I've always thought that if time went by, being the oldest, Peter would get kinda paternal over the pack and its members. So I wanted to try it considering I have a sinking feeling they're going to kill him in Season 3. So yeah. If you read this.. *hands cyber cookie* **

**Disclaimer:: If you haven't caught on that I don't own this by now, then you need to go get your head checked. **

**Warnings:: Okay, this is where stuff starts to get bloody and cussy and kinda gory. There will be dark themes and suicidal thoughts and actions in later chapters. **

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"Sam.. he's not healing.. he's not healing right" Riley was kneeling over her brother, her hands cupped around the protrudence from his chest, the blood welling beneath it. Pressing down upon the wound with one hand, she moved the other one to prop his head up with her other hand. She tried a weak smile, looking down at her brother whom was still trying desperately to breathe, although it was obviously in vain. "Ssshh... it's going to be okay.. You're going to be fine.. Sam? He's not-"

"I know! Just give me a second.. I-I need to think.." He moved to crouch beside the beta, his eyes scanning for any other injuries.

"W..Why isn't he healing?" It was Isaac, sounding almost timid, like he was intruding on a private moment. To be honest, they all did. Everybody with the exception of Peter had taken a full step back. "I.. I mean.. pull out the arrow.. he should heal right?"

"Starving and being on the run knocks out your healing process.. We're all healing slower than the average human." Sam spat the words through clenched teeth. He quickly removed his jacket, wrapping it around the arrow against Felix's skin. The sight beneath the jacket made the entirety of the Hale pack suck in a quick breath in shock.

Sam was wearing a shirt that was about the size of one Derek would wear. It was charcoal grey with a black strip around the collar, but that wasn't what had drawn their attention. Despite the size, it hung extremely loose on his body, quite frankly it appeared to be several sizes too large. They quickly realized that the shirt wasn't too big. If he had been at his proper weight and muscle mass the shirt would have fit perfectly. He was extremely underweight, on the brink of malnutrition. The back and a good majority of the side of the shirt was covered in dried blood stains, along with other stripes and spots of blood in other areas. They could also now see more of his body.

The bones in his neck were large protrusions, the outline of his entire spine could be seen all the way down his back, even through the bloodstained shirt. The outline of his ribs could also be seen, as could his collarbone. His arms held little to no muscle mass, and his joints in his elbows looked like they were close to popping out. His overall appearance was reminiscent of that of a starving stray dog.

"Get Deaton. We're going to need some help here." The voice was calm and forceful. It was Peter, who had come to kneel beside Sam. He removed his own jacket, before looking at his former packmate. "Take the jacket off the wound, put it under his head. We need to get some air into him before he looses consciousness." Sam did as Peter had said without another thought, and as soon as he took his jacket away from the arrow, Peter had replaced it with his own. They heard rapid talking, and it didn't take a genius to know that Derek had just called Deaton and told him there was an emergency.

Somewhat awkwardly, Peter stood up and took a step back, Felix's blood on his fingertips as he flicked his eyes to the rest of the Hale pack, who looked utterly confused and shocked that he had helped an individual that was not in his pack. He seemed to decide he didn't care as he spoke again.

"Just keep him conscious until Deaton gets here."

"There's something else I can do." Sam turned, looking at Riley, his soft topaz eyes portraying a message that she obviously understood instantly.

"Don't even think about it." Her voice was strained and there was also a touch of fear layered underneath it. He obviously wasn't listening as he forced his eyes to flash red, morphing from chocolate-brown to shocking red.

"Prop him up." he ordered, and with a degree of reluctance, Riley obeyed, placing her hands under her brother's armpits, raising him slightly off the ground. Sam stood and walked forward, placing his hand on Felix's shoulder. Seconds later a faint popping and cracking sound could be heard. The veins on his hands turned to a dark black color that inched up his arm, to his shoulder and into his chest.

Isaac watched in pure and utter horror. He remembered taking pain from the little dog at the vet's. Just that bit had made him want to break down and collapse in a corner somewhere. He had also felt substantially weaker. He couldn't even picture how his old friend was feeling, as he had now kept his had on the man for pushing a minute.

Sam was becoming weaker and weaker, pain flooding his veins and fogging his head, but he wasn't letting go. His breath became labored as he started to feel a distinct ringing in his ears. Each heartbeat was the equivalent of agony as he took more and more of his beta's pain. He wasn't aware how long he held on, but he could feel Felix stop shaking beneath his hands. He wanted to pull away now, but his limbs were _so _heavy. All he wanted to do was fall asleep right there. Even the pain dulled away slightly as he felt himself slipping. It felt good.

It was Peter who yanked Sam away from the now near painless beta, who was healing a bit faster. As Sam fell backwards, blood dripped from his mouth and nose. Without any warning he rolled to stand on his hands and knees before retching violently. Nothing came up, but he continued dry heaving until more of the crimson liquid dripped from his lips. As he looked up his eyes were once again brown. Everything was blurring but he still continued to try to stand. As soon as he made it half up, he was falling again. A strong arm caught his arm and pulled him upright. It was yet again Peter who helped him. A second later, when most of the dizziness had receded, he moved away, able to stand and walk under his own power. He leaned against a tree, his eyes falling on Felix.

"Thank you Peter." he said, his thanks genuine as he dipped his head to the man who had sealed his fate as a wolf in the same forest in which they now stood.

"He's healing faster.. you didn't just take his pain away.." Derek sounded mildly confused.

"Yeah.. I.. I gave him some.. well.. most of.. my energy.." Sam was panting, barely able to get a breath in without sharply exhaling and taking in another. He rose the collar of his shirt to his face and wiped away most of the blood from around his mouth.

"Doesn't look like you have a lot to spare." It was an offhand comment, there was no real offense or intention behind it, but that didn't aid the halt of the reaction, which turned out to be a scathing comment growled through grinding teeth.

"I'll do anything to protect my family." There was particular stress on the words 'I'll' and 'my family', which turned what could be a completely normal sentence into a comment that was the equivalent to a slap straight across the face. Derek kept his temper though, only allowing a short snort to break through before turning back to his pack.

"Josh, Sarah. Go see if you can find the hunter that did this" he gestured vaguely to Felix's limp form that was slumped against a tree, his sister still applying pressure to the wound. "Bring them back here."

"No!" Sam's voice was panicked, urgent, and there was a trace of worry. "Come look.. look at the end of the arrow." Derek walked over, and scrutinized the edge of the arrow. Against the black metal, there was a white drawing of a wolfsbane leaf. "There's a group of hunters.. they've been after my pack for a long time now. T-they've killed four of us. This is our fight. Not yours. We'll handle it, we'll get them out of this territory as soon as Felix is okay."

"Alright." Derek let out a low sigh as he backed away from the bleeding wolf and his sibling. Before he could get far away however, he heard a sound that made him almost flinch in sympathy. Deep coughing that was layered with fluid. He turned when he realized that the coughing was not coming from Felix, like he had suspected. It was coming from Sam, who was doubled over, coughing up more crimson liquid. He got a feeling deep in his gut that his old friend wasn't coughing because of giving his energy. Something was- scratch that.. there was obviously a lot more going on that he didn't know about. Before he could even begin to wonder what was going on, he saw Deaton's care pull up in the drive, but two people got out.

The first was Deaton of course, he looked almost the same as he had for the past six years, but there were some subtle differences. His features were harder, better set, and his body more stiff, although that could've been from the fact that he was here for an emergency and there was one man laying on the ground with an arrow sticking out of his chest and another doubled over, obviously malnourished and coughing up blood.

The other was a bit shorter, and obviously younger. He had lightly tanned skin and short cut brown hair. His eyes were curious and full of light as he seemed to take in every detail before him. His eyes came to rest on the wolf that was doubled over, choking and gasping as blood dripped off his lips. There was an odd familiarity as he looked at him.

Sam raised his head, the sound of two new heartbeats pulling him back to conscious thought. He stared as his old boss and another came closer. He stared at Deaton's companion, and Deaton's companion stared back.

"Stiles?"

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**You guys wanted Stiles, you got 'im. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. **

**In one of the upcoming chapters Sam/Scott's son will be introduced. I have drawn a blank on names for the kid. I thought about naming him after a member of the pack (i.e. Derek, Peter, or Issac), but I don't know if it would be too cheesy. If you could leave a review or PM me with any ideas about what ****_you _****think it should be, it would be much appreciated. **

**As always, thanks for reading and reviews are much appreciated. See ya next chapter!**


	8. Panic

**A/N:: Hey, I know it's been awhile since my last update, sorry for the wait. I'll try to do better from now on, although I can't be certain with my school and extracurricular stuffs, but I really will try. **

**Disclaimer:: No. No. No. I don't own this. **

**Warnings:: Blood, Gore, and Cussing. There will be suicidal thoughts and actions as well as dark themes in later chapters. **

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"Stiles?" Silence rushed over every being as Deaton turned to look at Sam, who was still partly bent over.

"Scott? Oh my-" Within a second he was moving toward the friend he hadn't seen in years, his obvious intention was to support his friend, but Riley beat him to it, wrapping her slender arms around Sam's torso and helping him stand up straight again. Deaton laid his hand gently on Stiles' shoulder, although his eyes flickered to Sam when he spoke.

"C'mon Stiles, he needs help first." His voice was calm and steady as he removed his hand and walked over to Felix, examining the wound and removing the two jackets that had served as means of staunching the blood that formed a puddle that the young man now laid in. Stiles had finally come to join him beside the wolf who seemed to be on the brink of passing out from a lethal combination of blood loss and oxygen deprivation. "Okay, go get my bag from the car." Stiles immediately complied, rushing to the car and returning, a black duffel bag suspended over his wrist as he returned, kneeling next to Deaton.

"Here." The bag quickly transferred hands as Deaton reached into the bag without consciously looking, knowing the location of everything within the bag from simple memory. He pulled out a hypodermic needle, followed quickly by a vile of a clear liquid labeled 'Epinephrine'. Stiles looked mildly surprised. "You're injecting him with adrenaline?" he asked as the 'vet' filled the syringe with the medication.

"It'll restart his system. As soon as I inject it, break his wrist. I'll get the arrow." Without question, Stiles positioned his hands on Felix's wrist.

"Wait! How does hurting him worse help him at all?" Sam's voice was defensive as he took a seemingly subconscious step toward his nearly motionless beta. Riley's hand was still on his side, offering support as he seemed about ready to hit the floor himself.

"Giving him the adrenaline will jolt his system. Then when we break his wrist, it'll restart the healing process, then we take out the arrow. He should heal after that."

"He _should_ heal?" Riley's voice rose an octave in worry for her brother, her blue-grey eyes filled with concern as she turned to look at Deaton for the first actual time.

"There's always a chance that it won't work.. he very well might bleed out if the healing process doesn't restart. But if we don't do anything now, your packmate _will_ bleed out for certain." It was clear they hadn't realized Scott's new status among his current pack. Sam gave a nod, although it was more of him trying to comprehend what was happening. His mind was rushing into overdrive as all possible outcomes and paths of action bounced around in his head to the point where he wanted to put a hand on each temple and yell.

"Ready Stiles?" Deaton had returned his attention to Felix, lining the needle up to one of the veins that pumped life in his neck. Getting the adrenaline into the jugular would ensure quick results, assuming it worked, that is.

"Yeah.." The veterinarian's companion tightened his hold on the bloody wrist that in seconds he would break. He pressed his thumbs into the weakest part of the bone, preparing to jerk it.

"Now!" Deaton dug the syringe into Felix's throat, and as the adrenaline was introduced into his bloodstream, his body gave a small jerk. A sickening snap could be heard as Stiles snapped the bone, which was accompanied by a loud curse and involuntary winces all around. Then the sound of flesh tearing reached their ears as the arrow was removed. Then everything got insanely quiet, they were waiting. Waiting and hoping that the healing process would jumpstart. After about thirty seconds, they were rewarded.

"He's healing..." Stiles' voice was more of a relieved sigh than a statement, and it was more to himself than to the crowd of anxious werewolves covered in varying amounts of blood from various sources that stood in a loose semicircle formation behind him.

Nobody could predict what happened next.

Aaron burst out of the forest, panting. The longest strands of his dirty blonde hair clung to his forehead due to sweat. He jogged up to Sam, ignoring the presence of the Hale pack entirely.

"I.. lured them... out of.. Hale territory.." he gasped between pants, but within about thirty seconds he was breathing closer to his normal speed. "I uh.. made sure they didn't.. double back."

"In what direction did you lure them out?" Sam's voice had returned to the confident voice of a leader who was sure in his decisions.

"Northwest."

"How did you lure them out?"

"I pretended to be you." Aaron's statement was accompanied by a snort-like yet playful laugh.

"How'd you do that?" Sam's amusement was growing slightly as Riley left him to sit on the dirt by her brother.

"Oh, it was easy. I just had to act like an arrogant bastard with some asshole on the side." Sam just rolled his eyes before looking to Riley and Felix, then back to Aaron. Derek had given a small snort at that comment, and Peter had shaken his head. Isaac looked down and gave a small smile.

"I'm going to go check in on Kristin, John, and the pups... Just to make sure." Sam turned and started walking toward the forest, when a sharp voice rang out, loud enough to stop him dead in his tracks.

"You're not going anywhere." Stiles had turned to face his old friend, a fire blazing in his eyes. "You need to be checked out before you go." Derek winced internally. He, of all people, knew how much the inner alpha rebelled against being told what to do.

"Alright Stiles.." the words were expressed as an exhausted sigh. "But there's absolutely nothing wrong with me." Everyone in the clearing with the exception of Stiles and Deaton could hear the deception in his heartbeat, but nobody said a word. "What do you want to know first?"

Deaton apparently figured that Stiles could handle it because he was carrying the black bag back to his car. Stiles stepped closer to Sam, his mind clearly shooting through all the things he should check to ensure his wellbeing. It took him awhile, but finally he spoke, and the words were pained. He had never imagined ever having to say these words.

"I need to know how malnourished you are."

"I'm not-!" Sam tried to interject.

"If I can see your spine through your shirt that should fit you but is insanely baggy, then you're malnourished. Now come on. I'm taking you to the vet's office."

"I'm not going anywhere. Felix just had an arrow ripped out of his chest, Aaron is exhausted, and Riley's freaking out. And lets not forget the homicidal hunters that are after us. No way in hell I'm leaving. You can 'examine' me or whatever the fuck you want to do, but you can do it here."

By this point the two youngest Hale pack members and Jackson had retreated onto the porch, talking inaudibly in hushed tones. Stiles seemed to contemplate what Sam had said for a moment, and then he paused.

"Fine. I'll look at you now. Take the shirt off. If you have any cuts that aren't healing quickly, having a dirty shirt on certainly won't help. I have a shirt in the car. You can wear that if you want once I'm done."

"I'll keep my shirt, thanks." Sam's voice was tense as he brought his hands to the bottom of his shirt and slowly pulled it over his head. He had almost forgotten about the other pack that was still standing about, but he was quickly reminded when several gasps rang out, Derek's included, as they saw his entire torso. His skin was stretched insanely tight over his bones, you could probably feel the backside of his ribs they protruded so much out of his sides, and his back was no better. Each spinal segment looked as if they were pressing any harder against Scott's skin they would break through, and the same was true for his shoulderblades. Then there were the scars.

Technically speaking, no werewolf should have any scars, unless they had them before they were changed. There was only two things that would leave a scar. One would be being injured by an wolfsbane laced weapon, and the other was an attack from an alpha that was bad enough. Sam was sporting both. All down his back were remnants of claw marks. On his shoulders and leading towards his waist were scars that looked suspiciously like bite marks. There was a long slash that started at his left shoulderblade and stretched across his back to his hip. There were also straight cuts, no doubt from a wolfsbane laced knife, that went along each rib, and it was quite obvious they had been cut open multiple times.

"Oh my..." Stiles' jaw had literally dropped open in complete shock, as had almost everyone elses. Only Deacon looked like he wasn't horrified. They jumped when Riley's phone rang suddenly. Sam took the opportunity to put his shirt back on, throwing a look to Stiles, similar to a 'told ya so' look. The looked was wiped away as Riley paled and held the phone out to him.

"Sam..." she whispered. He took the phone as quickly as possible, putting it up to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Sam.. they found us." It was a woman's voice. He recognized the voice as that belonging to Kristin, and he heard a growl that was undoubtedly his head beta, John, somewhere in the distance. "They've brought us to.. I don't even know where and they have-" She was cut off by the sound of a young child screaming, whether in fear or pain was unclear, all Sam could hear was his son's voice, screaming.

"Help us Daddy! Please come help us! Make them stop!"

Then the line went dead.

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**DUN DUN DUUUN! I know this was kinda a random chapter but I couldn't get my brain to concentrate. As always, thank you for reading, reviews are very much appreciated, and I'll see ya next chapter!**


	9. Breaking

**A/N: Nothing much to say really.. I know this chapter is kinda randomish, but my mind won't stay straight! Grr.. So anyways, I hope you guys like it, but I can't guarantee anything. **

**Disclaimer: I. Don't. Own. Anything. That. You. Recognize. **

**Warnings: Blood, Gore, and Cussing. There will be suicidal thoughts and actions as well as dark themes in later chapters.**

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_"Help us Daddy! Please come help us! Make them stop!"_

The words rang in Sam's ears as he went numb. His whole body seemed to just freeze as the fact that the sadistic hunters whom had killed many of their number had managed to get his son. It couldn't be real. It couldn't be happening. But it was. The phone slid from his fingertips and a second later he could hear it colliding with the dirt by his feet. He hadn't realized it, but his eyes had closed. He forced them open again, but he didn't move, he couldn't. He simply stood there as he let reality sink in_._

Derek had shared an anxious look with Peter, as they had all been able to hear the words spoken over the cell phone. They looked at Sam, anticipating his reaction. They watched the phone slip from his hand after the line ended. They each felt a stab of sympathy as his eyes slid closed and his face fell slack.

Felix groaned and tried to stand up. Before he could even halfway manage it, Sam seemed to have returned to life. He walked to Felix and gently pushed him back down in a laying position. As they watched they noticed his hands were shaking, although they couldn't tell if it was from what had just happened or if it was because of something else. Whatever the reason, however, Sam kept pushing Felix back down and Felix was having none of it.

"Sam.. I have to go.. I have to.. they have Kristin and the pups... I have to.." His breath was labored as he tried once again to get up. Sam laid his hand on the beta's shoulder and looked him in the eye.

"Felix.. you need to rest, to heal. You're not going to do Kristin, John, or the pups any good if you go in there hurt. Now lay down. Get some rest. Heal." Sam patted his shoulder gently before standing up and turning away. They could all see the wheels turning in his head as he paced up and down the clearing a few times. Riley moved back to her brother's side.

"He's right Felix.. you need to rest. We'll come back as soon as-" she never got to finish her sentence when Sam whirled around, his pacing stopped.

"No, you're not going either." His voice was resolute, but it wasn't yet an order. His shoulders stiffened slightly as she turned to face him.

"And why in the hell are you not letting me go? They're my packmates too." She defended. "I may not be the best fighter, but I'm not going to just sit around while you're off fighting genocidal hunters who want us all dead."

"First, I'm not going alone, I'm taking Aaron, and second, they don't want all of us dead.." There was a painfully long pause before he spoke again, in a hushed voice. "They want me dead. I'm the one who turned one of them." His voice was laced with a guilt that made the Hale pack, Stiles, and Deaton all feel a pang of sympathy, some more strongly than others. Riley walked closer to him, her features fading from angry to concerned.

"Give me one, good, valid reason that I should stay here while you're out risking your neck and I won't argue. Just one Sam and I swear I won't say a word. One good reason." Her voice broke ever so much as she stared at him. "Just one.." she repeated, her light soprano voice shaking.

"Fine.. If.. If I go and something happens.. And you and I both know that it very well could.. I need someone that I can really, truly, honest to God trust to take care of Jack." It was a painful admission that seemed to almost crush the will of the younger alpha.

Derek and some of the others took a step back, a feeble attempt to give them some sort of privacy, although naturally they could all hear, and Sam seemed like he didn't much cared as he looked at Riley.

"Can you do that?" He asked, his voice quiet.

"Y..Yes.." Riley stammered, looking like she might be fighting tears. Those tears fell after she heard what Sam said next.

"You need to tell him everything.. Tell him about where he comes from.. about his family.. his grandmother.. everyone.." Riley gave a weak, tearful laugh.

"You've talked about them enough for me to write him a book about his dad's family." Her voice broke as she stepped closer to Sam, who opened his mouth to speak again.

"Riley.. tell him about his mother.. Tell him about everything."

"I will.." There was an excruciating pause. "You're not planning to come back, are you?" She didn't have to hear a word. The small shake of the head 'no' was more than enough. "Who will-?" She started.

"Probably John. He's the oldest and most experienced. He'll probably become the next Alpha." Sam forcefully turned away from Riley, unsure of how much more it would take for him to break. He walked to Stiles, an unsure look upon his face. "Stiles.." He started carefully, his voice nervous. "I'm sorry I left but I-"

"Shut up Scott. I don't care why you left. Just get your werewolf ass out there and destroy some psycho hunters. Kay?" Typical Stiles tried being humourous, and it kind of worked. Sam gave a small smile and pulled him into a 'bro hug'.

"Sure thing." He turned to look at his old pack, before walking toward Aaron, his eyes set and determined. "Are you ready?"

"Yep." And with one more look toward everyone, they took off running. Sam took the lead, and Aaron ran on his right hand side. They left the group of people in the clearing completely dumbfounded. It seemed like everything was spinning. Derek broke the silence.

"Peter.. let's get Felix inside.. we have a bed where he can stay while he heals." Peter nodded, and himself, Peter, and Jackson carefully lifted the man, despite their gentleness there were several small curses as they lifted the wolf who should way much more than he did. Eventually they got him to a bed where his sister stayed with him. The rest went into the living room and sat, trying to wrap their minds around what just happened.

* * *

It was almost midnight when the two males made it to the encampment of the hunters that had terrorized them for years. They had discussed their plan on the way there. Sam looked toward his Beta, a small smile on his face. Aaron returned the smile.

"You're not letting me go in are you?"

"No. I'll send the others out when I get them safe. As soon as you hear me give a signal, you take them and run."

"Alright."

"And Aaron?"

"Yes?"

"It's been my honor."

"Same."

Sam disappeared into the darkness as he slipped pass enemy lines.

* * *

**There we go. I couldn't decide which name to go with so I just went with Jack for Sam's son. Reviews are always appreciated. See you next chapter. **


	10. Easy

**A/N: Okay, it's been a while since my last update, so I thought I'd post a bit of a longer chapter today. Please forgive me? *offers cookie* Okay, now that that's out of the way, I just want to say this. I don't really ****_plan _****my stories like I should. I decide a basic plot, then how I want it to end, then I figure out how to get from point A to point B as I go along. If there are any continuity or such errors, please tell me so I can fix them. Thank you. *huggles* **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I don't. Why don't you understand that? NOBODY UNDERSTANDS ME! *wails* But yeah, I don't own anything. **

**Warnings: Not as much gore and such in this one, but there will be in later chapters, as well as suicidal thoughts, actions, and similar dark themes. **

* * *

Sam forcefully kept his heart as even as he could, as if everyone could hear it. As if it could alert his enemies as to where he was. He inched forward, scanning the ground for tripwires, mines, or similar he knew these hunters were partial to using. So far the only thing he could see was some barbed wire and a fence he would have to get past. He already knew that this was far too easy, although he would never actually admit it to himself, he knew not to do that from experience. There was more around here that was waiting for him, so he simply stayed on his guard for everything and anything.

He took another wary step through the suffocating darkness his breath creating a slight fog that hung in the air for a moment before dissipating. It vaguely reminded him of the night he returned to Beacon Hills for the first time in years. He remembered the nervous flutter of his heart as he entered pack grounds he hadn't ventured into for what seemed like decades. He shook himself. He had to get his head straight, now was most definitely _not _the time to be distracted. Jack, Ariana, Kristin, and John were all depending on him getting into this compound and getting them out alive. He grit his teeth and took a step toward the barbed wire, mentally flinching away from the pain he knew would result. That's when he heard it.

A slight ringing noise, too soft to be picked up by a human ear, kind of like a dog whistle. He could only hear it faintly, but it was there. The longer he listened, puzzling over what could be causing the faint, high pitched noise, the quicker he began to realize that his brain was going a bit fuzzy. It felt almost like he had just woken up. Quickly he backed up, away from the noise. As soon as the sound left him his head cleared, returning to perfect clarity. He wracked his brain, trying to figure out how he could get past this. If the sound got stronger as he got closer to the fence, he wasn't sure how much actual thought he would have left when he reached it, let alone past it.

He skirted about halfway around the perimeter of the compound before discovering a weakness in the noise, a chink in the armor, as it were. He found a spot where he could walk almost up to the barbed wire without hearing the ringing noise. If he really hurried he could make it to the fence and get over it, under it, something before he lost control and collapsed. He didn't have any idea _how _exactly he knew he would collapse, his instincts simply told him he would. He never ignored his instincts. Nine times out of ten they were right. Now he had to face making his way through the barbed wire.

The rusty, razor sharp spikes reached out for him already, tearing at his jeans and leaving scratches of blood on his legs through the pants. He ground his teeth but didn't make a sound as he slowly advanced through the forest of metal. He noticed dried blood on many of the spines, and tried to distract himself from wondering whose blood it was and if they had made it over the fence. Instead he set little goals for himself, making himself his competitor. He timed himself. If he could get one foot in the next thirty seconds. If he could make it to the small gap in the next ten. Each time he met his 'goal' a feeling of triumph, albeit small, rushed through him, giving him the will to force himself forward. The spikes hurt, and by the time he made it to his fence, up to his waist was covered in scratches, some deeper and longer than others, but all painful enough to make him simply lay by the fence.

He simply lowered his body onto the hard packed earth, allowing himself a breif moment to heal and recollect. Running all day and the night before as well as healing Felix left him already more than ready to give up, to lay here and wait for the hunters to come with the guns that they would point at his head. The hunters that would laugh as he inhaled his final breath. That would be so easy right now, to just give up, but a single thought forbid him to do so.

The sound of his son screaming for him echoed painfully in his ears, initiating a dull throb in his chest. The thought brought him first to his hands and knees and then to just his knees and eventually back on his own two feet. He brushed his hand against the chain link fence, just to be certain that no electrical current ran over it. When he had decided it was safe he looped his fingers around the metal and heaved himself up. When he reached the top, he simply allowed himself to drop from the top, landing on all fours. His natural instinct told him to howl to his pack, let them tell him where they were, but the knowledgable human side of him knew better. He knew howling would be a dead giveaway to the genocidal hunters as to where he was.

He leaned backwards on his heels, rocking slightly as he thought. He scanned the group of buildings, looking for the one with the lowest roof and the closest one to the fence. Staying low, he moved to the smallest building, with a truck parked conveniently enough beside one of its lower precipices. He crouched on the top of the cab before using it like a springboard to leap to the roof. As he scrabbled atop it, he found himself ducking into a small gap between two sections of the building as loud voices carried his way.

He saw three hunters walking into the clearing, rifles and bows slung over their shoulders, tazers strapped to their belts alongside pistols, daggers, as well as different kinds of arrows. These were men equiped for battle. They were also drunk. Well, at least two of them were drunk. One could have been sober, or he could have just been a functioning alcoholic. Sam didn't know nor did he really care. He needed to find a way to get in, but first he needed to know where his pack was.

He felt his heart racing as he tried to recede into himself, feeling for his inner wolf side, the beast that clawed at his ribcage and howled for release. He knew if he allowed his wolf to reign, he would be able to find his pack. That being said, he also knew that if he were to become his wolf, there was a good chance that he might take on his full alpha form. It didn't take a genius to know that such prospect would not be good if he were to need to make a stealthy escape or entrance. Such thoughts were shoves aside however, when he realized he had no choice. To get his pack out as quickly as possible he would need to embrace the animal side and get to them as fast as he could.

As expected, the second he freed his inner wolf, he started to change. No longer was he human, but he wasn't taking his full alpha form, every time his inner wolf tried to force this, he broke through, his conscious battling until the wolf receded some. His ears changed to points and his canines and nails elongated. His eyes flashed blood red, darker than some alpha's, as he allowed instinct to guide him in the shadows. As he neared a window on a ledge above him, the scent of his pack became abundantly clear. Forcing his inner wolf back in submission, he shifted human, before leaping for the ledge. He almost made it. His shoulders held most of his weight while the corner of the concrete windowsill dug into his ribs so painfully he wanted to cry out.

It took a tremendous amount of effort, but he managed to haul his body onto the ledge where he perched, what little muscle he still had quaking from effort. He slammed his shoulder against the glass, shattering it. Thankfully his jacket took most of the glass and very little of it broke into his skin. As he climbed through the window and straightened out, he was faced with two of his pack.

Their wrists tied high enough above their head so they dangled, the slightest movement rigged to give an electric shock. Rigging on their feet kept them anchored to the floor and a metal band around their waists kept them from moving in their restraints. They had duct tape over their mouths, although their eyes widened and they tried to speak as Sam stood before them. It took him a second to realize what they were trying to say. He realized too late. A baseball bat came down on his back, making the air his out of his lungs in pain. He whirled to face the man who struck him, and with a furious growl knocked the man backwards and into the wall that was also concrete. He appeared to be knocked unconscious on impact.

Sam immediately walked to his packmates and removed the duct tape from their mouths, if somewhat harshly.

"Where is the key to get you out of these things?" He demanded, his voice hoarse yet with a pride tinged into it that declared dominance.

"He's got it. Front jacket pocket, left side." The female that spoke had short cut hair that resembled Riley's, although it was pale brown, and dull green eyes that bordered grey. She jerked her chin toward the unconscious man on the floor.

"How did you find us?" This was John. He had dark brown hair and hard set features that accented navy blue eyes. His voice was slightly deeper than Sam's and it was hoarse as he spoke.

"How the hell do you think I found you?" Was the snappish reply they got as they were released from their shackles. He stood back as they got used to standing under their own power again and as they massaged their wrists to increase blood flow to areas that had gone so long without. "Where are the pups?" his voice broke dangerously like he was scared to know the actual answer. It was John who gave an answer.

"Downstairs somewhere, with the hunters. I don't know specifically where though, but I could show you." Sam nodded, before turning to Kristin, the female.

"Go out the window, scale the fence and leap from the top. See if you can get completely over the barbed wire. You _cannot _stay where you hear the ringing. Find Aaron by the gate around front." The female looked like she wanted to protest. Respect for her alpha seemed to keep her from doing so however as she went out of the window and dropped the ground. John pulled open the door and dashed down the stairs three at a time, Sam right on his heels. As they burst into a room on the first floor, ignoring the lock, they saw a little girl, not even three years old, sitting on a small mattress in the corner, crying softly. She turned to look at them, and a smile split her face.

"Unca Sam! Unca John!" She jumped up from the bed and ran to Sam and hugged his legs, then did the same to John, who picked the girl up and held her to his chest. He smiled at the child, who nuzzled into his chest.

"Hey Ariana. We're going to get you out of here. Sound good?" He said, as the girl nodded vigorously into his chest. "We just have to find Jack." The girl frowned.

"But.. but Jack is with the dark man." Her voice trembled.

"Who's the dark man Ari?" John inquired.

"He's mean. And he smells funny."

"Where did he go with Jack?" Sam asked gently, stroking back strands of the girls blonde hair in an effort to calm her enough so she could speak. She didn't speak however, she pointed to a door they hadn't seen before, in the back of the room.

"Take Ari out of here. I'll be out with Jack" As John carried the girl out of the room, Sam burst through the door, only to come face to face with a muzzle of a pistol.

He should've known getting his son to safety wouldn't be this easy.

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**Well, thank you for reading, as always. I love you if you've stuck with me this long, and I still love you if you just started. I love you if you started but didn't finish. Spread the love! Okay, hippie moment over. But as always, reviews are much appreciated and I'll see you next chapter! Bye!**


	11. Compromise

**A/N: Hey, I know it's a bit late, but I've been doing a lot lately. Stupid real life. Anwyay.. just wanted to put this one out. **

**Disclaimer: Just stop. I don't own anything I am poor! *sobs* **

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Sam felt his own heart speed up slightly as he stared at the glint that reflected off the barrel of the pistol that had been thrust into his face. His eyes moved from the weapon that was aimed for his skull to the man who was holding the gun, although from his perspective he couldn't see much, and to be honest he didn't need to. He knew exactly who he was face to face with.

"Tobias." The word was spat like it burned his tongue as his lip curled, exposing a long canine. This probably wasn't the greatest idea, as the hunter flipped the gun and before he could move far, the butt of the gun slammed into the underside of his jaw, knocking him backwards and causing stars to dance in front of his eyes. As he regained his sense of mind, the young alpha slid backwards, his shoulders squared with a confidence that was close to arrogance. If one were to look closer, they would see the evidence of the ruse, the truth that Sam was bordering on collapsing and was simply putting on a brave face.

Though his head was up and his shoulders were squared, his breath was ragged and uneven, as if the air had just been forced from his lungs. His eyes hadn't shifted their color, even though his canines had grown out, and he shifted his weight from foot to foot, as if neither one could bear to carry much weight for long. Thankfully, the hunter, revealed to be named Tobias, didn't seem to notice as he trained his gun on the werewolf.

"Sam." He said the word as if it were a curse, his fingers tightening around the pistol until his knuckles turned white, yet he still refrained from pulling the trigger. His forehead shone with the film of sweat that covered it, his eyes flickered from the alpha to the door, clearly afraid of others bursting in at any minute. At closer inspection the 'man' was really only about nineteen, maybe twenty on the upside. He was a kid. He didn't have the appearance of anyone that would kill. Looks, however, could be deceiving. Pale hazel eyes shone beneath set, dark eyebrows. His pale lips pressed into a line as his eyes followed Sam, who was looking for a low blow, and he found one.

"So Tobias, how's your brother doing?" Tobias' hands shook on the gun, his eyes widening slightly and his heart rate increasing. Sam smiled. This was obviously the desired effect. His shoulders shook for a moment before he squared them in an attempt to calm himself and look straight at Sam. "Where's my son?" His voice had changed from the first sentence, which had borne a cruel, icy edge to that of a desperate father. His eyes flickered around the room, as if the boy could have been hiding and he had just missed him. The only thing he could see, however, was a wooden chair and a desk that set beside a closet. He returned his eyes to the hunter as he spoke.

"What makes you think I'd tell _you_?" He said the words with a sneer that exuded superiority. He raised the gun higher, pointing it directly at Sam's head, a smile playing at his lips. "Jackie boy, come on out here, it's okay." There was a long moment of silence before the closet door creaked open. A little boy with dark brown hair and eyes peeked out, looking plain terrified. A cut, Sam couldn't tell how big it was, was on the boy's head, by his temple, leaving down to his cheek with blood crusted over it. Sam knew that head wounds bled more, but it didn't help steady his nerves. At the sight of his father the boy walked out of the walk-in closet, but he didn't advance or move toward his father. He just looked toward Tobias, who took a step back, lowering the gun slightly but holding it at an angle to let Sam know that it was still aimed directly toward him. He moved to sit on his knees and wrapped his arm around the boy.

The second the hunters hand touched his son, Sam snarled and took a step forward, ready to attack the man just for touching his boy. But before he could take another step, the gun shifted. Rather than pointing at him, the muzzle of the gun was pressed to the little boy's side. The message was plain in the hunter's eyes; Move and he gets it. As if understanding said message, Sam's body stiffened, taking on the likeness of a board as he did so. His voice shook as he spoke again.

"Please.. let him go... please." At the pleading, Tobias looked infuriated. He retrained the gun on Sam, his eyes flashing in rage.

"Please? _Please?! _Did my brother say please? Did he beg for his life before you destroyed him?" The man's voice took on a hysterical edge as he stood up straight again. He walked forward until Sam felt the barrel of the gun pressing up against his ribs. He allowed himself to be pushed against the wall. "Did he beg and plead with you? Did he beg for mercy?" He was right up in Sam's face now, and despite his furious glare, the glisten of tears could be seen.

"I didn't kill your brother." His voice never shook as he spoke honestly. He had never killed the hunter who had been Tobias' brother. "He attacked our pack without reason. He got bitten. He killed himself. At least, that's what I'm assuming, but then again, to attack a pack in the middle of the night and to go after the pups first.. He probably didn't kill himself. He was probably too much of a coward. Probably made you do it. Didn't he Tobias? Or were you forced to? Did he attack you on the full moon? Did you watch the light leave his cold, heartless eyes? I wish I could have. I _wish _I had killed him. Then at least the last thing he would have seen wouldn't be his coward of a brother." By the time he had finished speaking, Tobias had pressed the gun in tighter against his skin.

"Shut up!" he screamed, clicking the gun, putting the bullet into place. "SHUT UP! You... you don't know _anything! _Nothing!" His voice shook as he yelled

"If you're not a coward, kill me." Sam snapped, his voice taking on a dangerous tone, he was serious, but he felt the gun shaking in Tobias' hand. "I said, if you're not a coward, then kill me." Tobias hesitated for a second, and that was all he needed. Sam slashed his claws against Tobias' stomach, feeling blood welling up under his hands. He planted a kick firmly on the wound he had just cut open, making the young man scream in agony. Sam threw the man up against a wall, his head slamming against the concrete as he slumped to the ground, apparently knocked out, if not worse. Sam turned to look at the five year old little boy who stared at him with wide eyes.

"Daddy.." the boy whimpered and ran forward, wrapping his arms around his father and crying. Sam wrapped his arms around his son's back, feeling his own chest tighten in relief. He kissed the top of the boy's head, smiling.

"It's okay Jack.. I've got ya.. let's get you out of here." He lifted the boy up, holding him close to his chest as he retraced his steps upstairs and out the window. As he made his way out onto the sill, his eyes dashed the shingle covered terrain on which he now stood. He picked his body up to a run before leaping off the building. With his free hand he grabbed ahold of the top of the perimeter fence and managed to pull himself and the boy up. He knew that getting over the barbed wire would be incredibly important if he wasn't going to hurt Jack. He bunched every muscle in his body before leaping. By some miracle he landed on the other side of the wire tangle and ran for his pack. He handed Jack off to Aaron, who looked bewildered. Kristin held Ariana, cooing gently to her daughter, and John looked out for hunters.

"Why are you giving him to me?" He asked, fear prickling his voice.

"Take them and run. Take them back to Beacon Hills. I'll distract the hunters." Aaron noticed he hadn't said anything about meeting up, but he nodded, holding Jack tightly against his body before starting running. Kristin started after him with Ariana. John lingered, giving his alpha a meaningful look before taking off running, leaving Sam alone against the mass of hunters that was forming within the compound.

* * *

They had walked for hours, and Sam had never come to catch up. They walked clear through the night. All the adults would rather run, but they didn't for two reasons. One, was that running with the children could be risky, especially with Jack's cut on his head. That being said, they all knew that it wasn't too bad of a chance. Jack snoozed against Aaron's body, his face pressed into the man's neck, while Kristin held Ariana similarly, kissing her daughters head every few minutes. Running with the kids would at worst wake them up.

The real reason they didn't want to run was because a part of them was holding out hope that Sam would appear, maybe a little banged up but otherwise okay. There was a way they walked now that definitely different then the rest of their pack had run the other day. They were leaderless and without direction. Yes, John, as expected, had stepped up to the plate and 'taken charge' as it were, but they were all waiting for the instinct that they were with a new leader. They had yet to feel it. They hoped it meant he was still alive.

The sun was almost at the noon position when the scraggly band of werewolves made it back to the Hale house. They were met outside by a frantic Riley who supported a still injured Felix with her shoulder. For a few minutes they were all lost in hugs and tears as the pack was finally and blissfully reunited.

Kristin helped Felix sit down, and she sat down next to him, setting their daughter across his legs to avoid the still painful wound on his shoulder, which she then fretted over. He simply waved a hand and paid attention to the little girl while his fingers linked with his mate's.

"Aunt Riley!" The second Aaron sat Jack down the little boy was running for his 'Aunt'. Riley picked the boy up and hugged him, before sliding to sit on her knees. She looked over the cut on the child's head and checked him for any other injuries, as if she didn't belive John's word that he was okay, but the boy wasn't paying attention. His large brown eyes were glued to the group of unfamiliar werewolves behind them, that were no doubt looking for a glance of Sam's son. "Aunt Riley.." he whispered. "Is that _them? _Ya know.. the ones daddy talks about in his stories? You know.. the ones from the picture."

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**As always, thanks for reading, reviews are much appreciated, and I'll see ya next chapter. **

**(By the way, if you are a Criminal Minds fan, you understand the irony I intended of making Aaron carry Jack home..) **


	12. Author's Note - IMPORTANT

**Hey guys.**

If you were expecting another chapter after.. God.. way too long.. I'm sorry. I had planned to update this and my other TW stories, but then I started watching season 3. I just.. It was hard for me to continue. For example..

***Writing Jackson when he isn't in season 3. He never stayed. He was going to become a more prominent character.**

*Erica and Boyd were going to become a big part of the story in later chapters, but I'm finding it hard to write Erica when we discovered she died in season 3. And I think we all kinda have a feeling that Boyd won't last till the end of the season. 

**Now before you come at me with torches and Gerard-ish swords, I am redoing this story. Same characters, but with more insight, better grammar and sentence flow, etc. Just an overall better story. Once I get that story caught up to where this one is, this one will be deleted. But until then, do you guys have any ideas for titles? I wanted to do an Irish title (not sure why.. might be my new obsession with Boondock Saints, but...) but I'm open to other ideas too. Leave a comment or PM me. **


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